Treasury publishes rules to operate the fixed-odds lottery business

Widely awaited by ‘bets’, the publication of the Ordinance will allow the regularisation of legal entities that currently operate fixed-odds lotteries in Brazil, in the sports betting and online gaming segments.

In order for ‘bets’ to obtain authorisation from the SPA/MF, they will have to meet criteria related to five categories: legal qualification, tax and labour regularity, suitability, economic-financial qualification and technical qualification.

The criteria were established to provide more protection for bettors, aiming to ensure that authorised companies have a corporate governance structure compatible with the complexity, specificity and risks of the business. In addition to having a high level of economic and financial capacity, authorised betting companies must have headquarters and a customer service channel in Brazil, comply with policies to prevent money laundering and the financing of terrorism, responsible gambling, betting integrity and the prevention of match-fixing, as well as adopting good advertising and publicity practices.

If all the criteria set out in the Ordinance are met, and upon payment of R$30 million to the Federal Government, betting companies will be authorised to exploit up to 3 commercial brands in the national territory for a period of 5 years.

The Ordinance sets a deadline of the end of 2024 for companies that were active in Brazil at the time of publication of Law 14.790, of 29 December 2023, to obtain authorisation. From 1 January 2025, companies without authorisation from the SPA/MF will be subject to the relevant penalties.

The deadline for analysis is up to 180 days, but as a transitional rule, those companies that request authorisation within the first 90 days will receive a response this year. For all those authorised in this first group, the authorisation orders will be published on the same day. SPA/MF expects to issue the first authorisations by the end of the second half of 2024.